MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil surpasses 1 million probable cases of dengue this year

Brazil could have twice as many dengue cases this year as in 2023, Trinidade said

Brazil has recorded 1,017,278 probable cases of dengue and 214 confirmed deaths from the disease so far this year, Agencia Brasil reported Thursday. Another 687 fatalities are under investigation.

The current dengue incidence rate is 501 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the Arbovirus Monitoring Panel, released Thursday by the Health Ministry. In the Federal District, it reached 3,612.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

 Among the probable cases, 55.4% are women and 44.6% men. The 30 to 39 age group continues to account for the largest number of dengue cases in the country, followed by the 40 to 49 age group and the 50 to 59 age group. The State of Minas Gerais tops the list of probable cases with 352,036 of them.

The Federal District is one of the states that has declared a public health emergency because of the explosion in dengue cases. According to Governor Ibaneis Rocha, the capital's health networks, both public and private, have collapsed.

“I went to the health center on Saturday, did a blood test, and found out I had dengue. I was then sent to Paranoá Hospital. I spent almost five hours there but ended up not being seen because, as there were practically no doctors, they only saw those who had a red emergency bracelet,” dengue patient Januário da Cruz Silva, 61, told Agência Brasil.

Civil servant Glaucilene Cardoso, 44, also took her daughter, Isabella Cardoso, 9, to a medical facility. The girl was diagnosed with dengue and Covid-19. “Luckily, my daughter's case wasn't serious, neither for dengue nor for Covid. But, of course, we're always worried.”

According to Health Minister, Nísia Trindade, Brazil could have twice as many dengue cases this year as in 2023, which reached 1,658,816 cases. The government is launching the “Brazil United Against Dengue” campaign on Saturday.

The main symptoms of dengue fever are a sudden high fever, pain behind the eyes, malaise, prostration, and body aches. The dengue virus can be transmitted to humans mainly through the bite of infected Aedes aegypti females.

The States of Acre, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, Santa Catarina, and Rio de Janeiro, as well as the Federal District), plus 154 municipalities, have already declared a state of emergency because of the disease. (Source: Agencia Brasil)